Domestic gas stations will carry out the first fuel price adjustment of October at 24:00 on October 15. The current crude oil change rate has reached around -4%, and fuel prices are expected to be reduced by 210 yuan per ton. Based on the current decline, it is predicted that the next round of gasoline and diesel prices will drop by 0.16 yuan to 0.19 yuan per liter. The next fuel price adjustment may see a renewed decline.

Starting November 1, gas stations must implement "invoicing upon transaction"

Previously, the State Taxation Administration issued the "Announcement on the Comprehensive Promotion of 'Invoicing upon Transaction' in the Refined Oil Retail Sector." The Announcement clearly states that starting from November 1, 2026, "invoicing upon transaction" will be comprehensively promoted at refined oil retail gas stations nationwide, achieving seamless integration between refueling transactions and invoice issuance.

What is "invoicing upon transaction"?

According to the Announcement, "invoicing upon transaction" means that after a refined oil retail gas station completes a refined oil sales transaction, it immediately issues a fully digitalized electronic invoice to the purchaser through the tax authority's Leqi platform based on the transaction data. "Invoicing upon transaction" covers different transaction scenarios in the refined oil retail sector, including situations where the purchaser pays for fuel through third-party payment platforms or internet platforms, as well as through fuel cards, cash, and other methods.

Scenario One: After refueling at a gas station, the purchaser pays for the fuel through a third-party payment platform. The Leqi platform should automatically issue an invoice after the purchaser completes payment. For example, after a natural person named A refuels at gas station F and pays 200 yuan through a payment platform's scan function, the linked platform automatically generates a value-added tax ordinary invoice by aggregating the refueling transaction data (fuel type, refueling quantity, unit price) and payment amount (200 yuan). A can pre-set the invoice header information (if not pre-set, the invoice header defaults to "Individual").

Scenario Two: After refueling at a gas station, the purchaser pays for the fuel through an internet platform to complete the transaction, and the internet platform will immediately issue an invoice to the purchaser with the gas station as the seller. For example, a natural person named A finds gas station G on an internet platform X, completes refueling, and pays 200 yuan through internet platform X. After payment is completed, the internet platform automatically generates an ordinary invoice with the "Seller" column showing gas station G and the "Total Price and Tax" column showing 200 yuan.

Scenario Three: The purchaser recharges a fuel card at a gas station, and the amount is automatically deducted from the fuel card when refueling. The purchaser can choose to have a non-taxable ordinary invoice issued at the time of recharge, or choose to have an ordinary invoice or value-added tax special invoice issued at the time of refueling — only one of the two options can be selected. For example, a natural person named A recharges 1,000 yuan at gas station H to obtain a fuel card and uses the fuel card to refuel 200 yuan. A can choose to have an invoice issued for the recharge amount. The system automatically generates a non-taxable ordinary invoice based on the transaction information, with the "Seller" column showing gas station H and the "Total Price and Tax" column showing 1,000 yuan. No further invoices will be issued for this and subsequent fuel card refueling.

For example, a natural person named A recharges 1,000 yuan at gas station H to obtain a fuel card and uses the fuel card to refuel 200 yuan. If A chooses to have an invoice issued at each refueling, then no invoice will be issued for this recharge (the system will mark this 1,000 yuan recharge). Based on this refueling transaction information, an ordinary invoice will be automatically generated with the "Seller" column showing gas station H and the "Total Price and Tax" column showing 200 yuan. Subsequently, ordinary invoices will be issued on a per-transaction basis according to the refueling amount until the recharge amount is reduced to zero.

Scenario Four: After refueling at a gas station, the purchaser completes the transaction through cash, credit sales, corporate transfer, or other methods. Based on the actual transaction data, the gas station should issue an invoice to the purchaser through the Leqi platform. For example, a unit named B refuels at gas station J (Leqi self-use) and pays 200 yuan in cash. After refueling is completed, the system automatically generates an ordinary invoice or value-added tax special invoice with the "Seller" column showing gas station J and the "Total Price and Tax" column showing 200 yuan.

For example, a unit named B refuels at gas station K (Leqi shared-use) and pays 200 yuan in cash. After refueling is completed, gas station K needs to manually supplement payment information and other methods to generate an ordinary invoice or value-added tax special invoice on the Leqi shared-use platform with the "Seller" column showing gas station K and the "Total Price and Tax" column showing 200 yuan.

For a long time, consumers have commonly encountered problems when requesting fuel invoices, such as needing to provide information every time and difficulty in obtaining retroactive invoices. A relevant official from the State Taxation Administration's Collection and Technology Development Department stated that promoting the "invoicing upon transaction" model can deeply bind the entire refueling transaction process. After consumers complete fuel payment, invoices are automatically generated and directly pushed to consumers, which can eliminate gas stations' refusal to issue invoices, omission of invoices, and incorrect invoicing. The new "invoicing upon transaction" model breaks down data barriers between systems, requiring no manual entry or review of information throughout the process, reducing the workload of gas station staff.

The Announcement requires that refined oil retail gas stations should achieve "invoicing upon transaction" before November 1, 2026. Those that fail to do so on schedule will be ordered to rectify by tax authorities and handled in accordance with relevant laws and regulations.

The Announcement emphasizes that tax authorities will strictly investigate and deal with various tax regulatory evasion behaviors by refined oil retail gas stations, such as using payment codes not belonging to their own unit. Once verified, they will be ordered to rectify in accordance with the law, fined up to 10,000 yuan, and have their illegal gains confiscated. If tax evasion is constituted, the tax authorities will also recover the unpaid or underpaid taxes and late fees in accordance with the law, and impose fines.